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Steak, with a Side of Questions

By Frank Bruni June 30, 2008 4:29 pmJune 30, 2008 4:29 pm

If the economy’s hurting and beef is so expensive, why do the steakhouses keep rolling along? (Photo: Francesco Tonelli for The New York Times)

The New York restaurant world is a volatile one: not a week goes by without jolting announcements about something that’s suddenly gone away (Bette), something that’s newly on the boards (a Boqueria in SoHo) or something that’s going through a Kafka-caliber metamorphosis, by which I mean an attention-getting one.

Let’s put the news about Geoffrey Zakarian’s Country in that final category.

When this two-level, two-pronged restaurant opened more than two years ago, it seemed to be an excellent addition to the local dining scene. The more casual downstairs turned out high-level comfort food of a sort, while the elegant upstairs took an haute approach with often sumptuous dividends.

And now?

Forget haute. Bring on the rib-eyes!

The Rockwell-beaded stage on which Country once luxuriated is becoming a brawny, fiery . . . steakhouse.

Because — you know — there are so few others around town.

Because steaks provide chefs like Mr. Zakarian, who told the web site Grub Street that he is fulfilling a meaty lifelong dream, an utterly unique and flexible opportunity to express themselves.

Let’s revisit that last point without the sarcasm. One interesting wrinkle of the continued steakhouse boom is that the price of prime beef has escalated significantly over recent years.

It used to be that when you looked at entrées on a menu and noticed one pair of digits much higher than all the others, you found a mention of lobster beside that number. These days, you’re as likely to find a mention of steak.

To wit: on the menu at Bar Milano, which I’ll review this week, the price range for entrees would be $20 to $32 if you left out the rib-eye. With the rib-eye, the range escalates to $43.

So if the economy’s hurting and beef is so expensive, why do the steakhouses keep rolling along? Do New Yorkers remain that powerfully in thrall to Atkins? Have we become that unadventurous in our grazing?

I don’t have definitive answers, but I have the impression that for chefs looking to expand their empires or to develop low-risk sources of additional revenue, the steakhouse is as conservative a bet as any other, though I wouldn’t press that theory on Mr. Vongerichten. V Steakhouse, in the Time Warner Center, had a short life, and he’s placing his current wager on buckwheat noodles at the just-opened Matsugen.

Although Country grew trouble-plagued soon after its opening months — it angered customers by raising prices abruptly, and I regularly fielded service complaints — Mr. Zakarian for now deserves the benefit of the doubt. Maybe he has some truly interesting steakhouse ideas up his sleeve.

Maybe the food at the forthcoming Country Steak will be more imaginative and surprising than that name.

And maybe this latest development shouldn’t leave us wondering if we’ll look up before too long to encounter Momofuku Steak (with kimchi steak sauce), Shake Steak (portable strips and filets from a metastasized shack in Madison Square Park) and Del Post House (the Bastianich-Batali Italian diva tamed and trussed by the Post House folks).

Er, $43.00? That’s cheap in the Switzerlandization of the United States. $50 ain’t what it used to be or haven’t you bought two bags of groceries lately?
The thin-is-ever-in brigade depends on beef to keep in shape. I’m in LA. I just got bounced outta Taco Bell (try the under 9 grams of fat chicken things) by a huge line at the drive-thru AND on the pedestrian line. It was like they were giving it away – and they are! We must adapt to the times – eat less of what costs more or more of what costs less. You can quote me. Flynn Falcon in the land of the cheap frijoles

As much as I love Bobby Flay (and trust me, there’s a LOT of love there), I can’t help but wonder about BF Steak . He has 6,418,239 other restaurants, but of course – a steakhouse.

His bag ‘o tricks, however, is fresh, Southwestern cooking (a la Mesa ..). Was opening a steakhouse (or Bar Americain, for that matter) a way to flex his creative muscles, or was it simply an easy way to reap more benefits from his ever-popular image?

Because I have an enormous crush on him, I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt and applaud him for trying restaurants out of his typical comfort zone.

Given that four pounds of quality filet mignon at Western Beef cost less than one portion at any of these steakhouses, I’ve taken to grilling my own. I might add the user experience from start to finish is vastly more enjoyable. Not to mention the markup on wines procured for my apartment is quite a bit less.

The steakhouse will always survive despite a lousy economy. It is the ultimate in glutony and a truly American experience. Political and business fat cats provide the Monday to Friday needed business and although some corporations are capping expenses for dining, some restaurants have responded by offering bunched meal deals or prix fixe to encourage check average. For many, the steakhouse in any metropolitan area represents the “good life” and success and having “arrived.”
One may impress business associates, friends, and significant others by utilizing the steakhouse, and steakhouses have broadened their menus to accomodate non beef lovers. Sushi, seafood, poultry and vegetarian sides sold as an entree are all appearing on menus and actually provide a better profit center for the operator. The beef represents the dollar volume and these other items represent great food cost percentiles which allow for profit. When commodities are running high as they are now, everyone from the distributor to the operator makes less. When markets are low or depressed, more profit can be realized even if sales volume may be down due to lower menu prices. The other point of interest is that todays steakhouses are not those of your father and his generation. The quality and range of cuts of beef far outdistance those offerings of days gone by. Operators, chefs, and the public in general are more demanding and knowledgeable about grading, country of origin, and designer beef. Steakhouses also now have more adventurous sides and salads (not just iceburg anymore)and can show real creativity. Not all steakhouses are created equal and those that charge high prices for subpar quality will soon find their doors shuttered.

I agree that a good steakhouse will always flourish. Even in a down economy, there’ll be people who can afford them. (Similarly, high-end restaurants won’t fold–I’m think of the ones like Jean-Georges and French Laundry.) Plus, as #2 wondered, how many business are allowing their employees to eat at a high-cost steakhouse on an expense account? Plenty, I bet, if it’s a good way to woo clients.

Bobby Flay’s steakhouse? I hadn’t heard about it. Well, more power to him. But I can’t stand him, and I’d never spend a penny in any of his restaurants. I don’t mean to rain on your parade, Rochelle (#9). If you have a huge crush on him, go for it!

The Steakhouse has many nuances but they all will live and die on the quality of the beef they are able to secure. Give people a great order of beef and elegant service and you will get rich. Sounds simple but in reality not all that common.
The very best places have found that they need some great bartewnders as the people will fill the bar as they wait for a table and the bar area becomes a money maker that makes the place famous.